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My electronics arrived today! While waiting for all of it to arrive, I finished up the lexan body…

I used a body reamer to cut out the holes for the body posts.

This body required a two step paint process. I had to mask the windows, then mask everything else except the black areas, spray the black, remove the mask, and then spray the violet.

Once the paint was complete, I had to remove the protective outer film and start applying the decals.

The kit came with LED light buckets. You can build them out or use a decal. Building them out truly adds realism, so I decided to use them but without working LEDs in them. I filled the headlights with dummy LEDs to complete the look.

The rear wing and exhaust.

Here is the completed body along side the power plant I picked out for it!

I like how you can see the inboard front suspension through the windows.

I have been working in a workspace with crappy lighting, so I apologize for the poor quality of my progress pictures. Overall, the body took about 10 hours to complete. Working on the lexan body is my favorite part of any build! I am obsessed with making the car look the best it possibly can! I will work on the electronics between now and the weekend. Don’t worry, I will cut down those body posts as soon as I’m ready to run it!

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Well, after seven long years, Tamiya finally decided to release their next generation belt drive on road RC, the TA06 Pro! Last year, I mentioned my interest in this chassis, but decided that I would hold off on any RC purchases since I was into so many other hobbies at the time: PC builds, photography, etc. Well, we are well into 2012 and I decided to take the plunge!

I always loved Tamiya’s chassis and bodies. In fact with this build, I plan to continue the progression of using a Honda Super GT body. I built two Honda Raybrig NSX Super GT cars in the past. You might recall…

Here is the nitro powered TG10-Mk1 I built over a decade ago:

And here is the TA05-IFS I built back in 2008:

It just seems natural that I go with the latest Raybrig Honda Super GT car for this new build!

The Honda HSV-010 Super GT car is the replacement for the NSX Super GT cars of the past. Something about the styling and the paint jobs of these Honda GT cars has me hooked! Here is a video of the real Super GT car in action:

In any case, I plan on going all out with this build. I plan on making this a race legal runner with shelf queen appointments, although I probably won’t be racing because I stink. LOL But I will put the latest brushless and LiPo technology into it. Here is what I’m planning…

The chassis (Tamiya TA06 Pro):
I love the Inboard Front Suspension! They started this trend in the TA05-IFS and I’m glad they improved it for this chassis. This “Pro” kit already contains many of the hop ups that most racers want to utilize. The kit doesn’t come with tires nor did it include a body which I was totally OK with – this allowed me to pick the specific tire compounds (Type A sticky) and tire inserts (Soft) that I wanted. I’m going to set this chassis up for smooth pavement parking lots/asphalt.

The control system (Airtronics MX Sport):
Airtronics is tried and true. I used their systems with all my nitro RC trucks. No more crystals! Yay!

Hopefully my finished product will look something like this!

Most of my parts will be trickling in this next week. I hope to be in the mood to document my build. As I get older, I find that I am losing my patience with documenting (journaling) stuff. I am trying hard to keep at it because it’s always fun to look back. We’ll see how I feel! LOL

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I’ve had the opportunity to bring our cars to several dealerships for service, repair, and maintenance. I brought our C300 in for its 3000-mile courtesy inspection this morning. I figure I have enough info about all my experiences with all these different dealerships to finally comment on them.

Mercedes Benz of Pleasanton

My first impression was bitter-sweet. Their facility is very old – my garage looks more high tech than their service department. Their service advisors are very friendly, however, they do not do Mercedes Benz loaner cars. If you need a loaner, you are driving an Enterprise rental. They have homemade treats and coffee in their ultra-low tech waiting room. Although I brought my car in for its 3k inspection, they did not offer me a loaner/rental car. It seems that it’s only for those who bought their cars there AND they need to perform a major service or repair. Lame. I ended up taking their shuttle back home and picking up the Audi. There is just something weird about buying an expensive car and getting treated like you are part of a herd. They always wash your car for you.

Cars serviced: 2008 C300

Facility: C+Advisors: AWork Quality: APrice: N/A as of yet.Overall: B

EastBay BMW

We get red carpet treatment from this shop because we have so many cars on the books with them. We always get offered loaner cars every time and we can get in and out of their facility fairly quickly. When they run out of loaners, they have Enterprise rentals available on their nickel. We never had to pay a dime for service since all of our cars were on free maintenance. (I would never own a BMW without maintenance!) They always seem to stand by their work – although their techs seem to be a little on the green side. You need to really know who to talk to otherwise you will be treated like a chump since their advisors tend to be a bit cocky. They have a nice lobby with HDTV, internet access and a Starbucks coffee machine! They always return your car washed.

Cars serviced: 2001 525i, 2004 M3, 2005 525i

Facility: A-Advisors: BWork Quality: A-Price: N/A for me, but I hear it’s very expensive at this shop!Overall A-

Livermore Audi

Wow – great people and great facility! Even though we didn’t buy our A4 from them, they still offer us loaner cars when we service our car there. Our service advisor was even thoughtful enough to ask if it was ok to wash our car, knowing that some people don’t like their car washed by dealerships. Their facility makes you feel good that you bought an Audi – very clean and professional. Porsche is right next door, so it’s nice to take a little stroll after dropping off your car.

Cars serviced: 2007 A4

Facility: AAdvisors: AWork Quality: APrice: N/A, we are on a maintenance contract.Overall: A

Dublin Toyota

Always top notch service! Although their hourly rate is no different than European garages! The only problem with this shop is that they have so much volume that you feel like you are part of a herd of people trying to get in line for tickets to a concert. Good luck waiting for your car – I waited for an oil change and it took about 1.5 hours to complete since there are so many people waiting. They have a huge parts department and a “pod” coffee machine for their patrons. They don’t wash your car.

Cars serviced: 2001 4Runner, 2005 Sienna

Facility: C+Advisors: AWork Quality: APrice: B-Overall: B+

Dublin Honda

I have nothing bad to say and nothing stellar either. I haven’t been to their new facility, but I’m sure it looks very nice. So most of my comments would be irrelevant at this point, but here is what I thought about their old location. No free car wash at this facility either.